FromNancysHeart brings Smiles to all Seasons...

This weeks EtsyTwitter Team Featured Etsian.

One of my favorite ETT Teammates and I featured this item during my Christmas in July Extravagana. You will find your fill of Fun & Festive seasonal decorations by FromNancysHeart at Etsy. There's Thunder & Lightning, and Lightning Bugs but what about the least famous brother... the Lightning Bulb? Santa's favorite insect of them all - The Lighning Bulb! This cute little guy certainly shines a whole new light to crafting GREEN : ) Sb

Meet Nancy Napoli, the creative mind behind FromNancysHeart, the Etsy Twitter Team's Shop of the Week! She has an Etsy shopful of original 3-dimensional ornaments, signs, wreaths, dolls and cake toppers--are all made of wood--and covering just about any holiday or occasion you can think of! And she ships internationally, too!

Nancy has been making little characters for years and never tires of the joy it brings. "Making their little faces just makes me smile and I love telling a story about each one." This imagination and love shows in each item description! Nancy gets most of her ideas from watch all the children in her family. She says "I never have enough time in the day to be able to capture all of their experiences and joys. I love their stories and try to incorporate their imaginative fun". She's pretty economical, too: "I love that I use little pieces of wood to create one item...it's great on space!"

Nancy is relatively new to social media, but it figured prominently in her goals for this year: exploring "The virtual world; and expanding my own knowledge of how it runs." Her aim is "to motivate and inspire customers back into handmade" by "tweeting and sharing creations of other ETT members along with other Etsians on Facebook ~ I hope to bring both family and friends to see the joy and wonderful artistry that's in the world." That's a goal that all Etsians can appreciate!

Nancy's plans for this Winter/Holiday Season include bringing out some new items for the family, possibly even a group gift! "I'm going to show items that can be multi personalized, possibly for a family; or for Grandma with the names of her grandkids." And special for this week, she'll be releasing a few new designs!

Bringing traffic and sales to your Etsy shop can be a challenge. Nancy has worked to create quality photographs and Twitter raport to accomplish this feat.


Nancy will be offering
Free Shipping 10/18 through 10/24
Just mention code SOTW1018
in the comments section
~~~~~~~
Follow Nancy at
Etsy Shop: http://www.fromnancysheart.etsy.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/fromnancysheart
Blog:
http://www.fromnancysheart.blogspot.com
Special thanks to Judy of WellspringCreations for writing this post : )

FirebirdHouse feeds your passion for Vintage...

This week's EtsyTwitter Team Shop of the Week

Introducing FirebirdHouse, the Etsy shop of Kristen Evans, and our Etsy Twitter Shop of the Week. FirebirdHouse offers books, jewelry, and home accessories. The common theme? Kristen loves using reclaimed and recycled materials as well as new. She says "I really love old things, especially books, and I am passionate about not losing a piece of history to the trash can or the landfill if I can help it." Her ultimate goal is to make everything that comes out of her studio a true work of art that is also useful and unique. It is not surprising that she is inspired by beautiful vintage items, everything from "furniture to an Art Nouveau book", she says.

Browsing FirebirdHouse, it is evident that her work is, by its very nature, unique and one of a kind. Kristen thrives on this variety: "When you work with vintage, you get used to the fact that every piece will be different. I am constantly challenged and inspired by what I do."

While Kristen is talented with updating vintage jewelry, her true love is vintage books. She is looking to move more into bookbinding and has just signed a gallery contract to do just that. How exciting to be able to do what you love most...and be recognized for your work! Congratulations, Kristen! She plans to migrate her FirebirdHouse inventory over to journals and other bookbinding efforts to reflect her changing focus.

Kristen is an accomplished Twitter user. Her only secret? "to interact as much as I can. My twitter-hood is a fantastic group of people, and I find them encouraging and inspiring." Conversely, to bring traffic to her shop, Kristen lists consistently (usually several times a week) and she uses posterous.com to post links to her new work in multiple places at the same time. "These are the best ways I have found for bringing people...to my shop."

~~~~~~~

Etsy Shop: http://firebirdhouse.etsy.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/firebirdhouse
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/firebirdhousedesigns
Blog: http://firebirdhouse.posterous.com

Special Thanks to Judy of WellspringCreations for writing this post!

Jewels that are out of this World by starbabyonline

Etsytwitter Team's Shop of the Week

Meet Debby Carter of starbabyonline, this week's Etsy Twitter shop of the week. Debby makes jewelry with an ethnic/organic feel and loves working with glass, semi-precious gemstones, and sterling silver. No newbie to jewelry design, Debby has been intermittently designing since 1973, discovering a love of beads early in life. In fact, she admits "working in a bead shop was the first job I ever landed! The owner was smart; she knew she'd get my salary back in my bead purchases."

Her creations are one of a kind because "I want everyone to have their own unique piece." Luckily, Debby finds inspiration everywhere: a bead, a fashion, a movie. As she puts it "Seriously, it could be just about anything... how the weather feels that day..."!

And she loves a lot about her craft-

* Her materials, "There are *always* new beads coming out";

* the social side of beading: "I've met so many friends starting with a conversation at a bead or craft store"; and

* even sharing her skills: "I'm paying forward everything I've learned from others."

Debby is making a big change this season: "I'm moving my 21 years worth of possessions from my three BR house into a house-share that's already furnished. Not coming at the best time of the year for me, because I can't devote as much time to Etsy as I'd like. After my move is complete in November, I'm going to list as much as I can on Etsy as possible. There'll be some great promotions going on with that too!" Something to look forward to!

As for Twitter and promoting her Etsy Shop, Debby feels it is important to promote others as much as she promotes herself, but it is also critical to speak up and let people know she has an Etsy shop!

~~~~~~~

Etsy Shop: http://www.starbabyonline.etsy.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/starbabyonline
Facebook: starbabygems and starbabyreadings
Blog: http://starbabyslittleuniverse.blogspot.com


Special thanks to Judy of WellspringCreations for writing this post!

EtsyTwitter Team's having a Wonderland Wedding

Special Event OCTOBER 1st - 9th

Planning a wedding can make you crazy with all the activity that surrounds it. It’s hard enough to find a dress and a caterer and a band, never mind thinking about the little extras that make the event fun and memorable. The EtsyTwitter Team is creating this event for the bride-to-be so she can find unique items in one place. Our wedding gift to the bride will be great specials and discounts that will make it easier on her wedding budget.

From October 1 thru October 4, Fall weddings will be featured. A splendid display of all the Autumn colors will make for a beautiful wedding. Items for themed weddings - Halloween, Victorian, Goth, and Southern Bell will add to the fun.

From October 5 thru October 9, Winter weddings are in season - snow white, sparkling blue ice, warm reds, Christmas and New Year’s. Come back everyday and see how the EtsyTwitter Team can help you have a magical celebration.

Meet Valerie from crochetgal

With Fall having cool evenings make sure your bridal party is warm during those pictures and/or as a thank you gift for being in the bridal party. These shawls can be custom made for all members of the bridal party. (please convo her for color and other arrangements if you don't see it in her shop) Shown here is the white wedding shawl with tiny beads.

A second version of this shawl is a butterfly shawl that can be viewed here.

Meet Ayca from SuppliesbyAyca

Use the coupon code "ETTLOVE" and she will offer 10% OFF on any of her crochet flowers.

The crocheted flowers can be used for wedding table decoration , favor , wedding hair accessories DIY ... etc.

A special thanks to Maxine from WhimsyFish for writing the first part of this blog & our PR for the event ~AND ~ to Jessica from frostedtreats for making the graphic for this event...and don't forget our Awesome Etsytwitter team leader ~Jennifer Kubrick~ of Jenco13 for organizing us and this event!

Add POP-art to your Cuppa Joe at dizzlePOP!

This weeks EtsyTwitter Team Shop of the Week...

Introducing Gigi Thorsen, the creative mind behind dizzlePOP, the EtsyTwitter Team's Shop of the Week. Gigi makes coffee cozies in a wide assortment of fabrics from bold to subtle, from flowers to skulls. It's no wonder she finds inspiration from these wonderful fabrics she's collected. In just over three years, her Etsy shop has seen 870+ sales, so news of her quality and attention to detail has certainly spread. Gigi says "I love making items functional and lasting!"

Some of dizzlePOP's popularity stems from Gigi's great customer service and fast shipping. Not one to rest on her laurels, her goal this year has been to make sure she has enough inventory to be able to turn her orders around quickly, but that's not her motivating force. She says, "For me it's not the numbers but the joy of creating and sharing!"

Gigi feels that Twitter is the best tool that brings business to dizzlePOP. Her secret? "Have relationships with your followers and those you follow." It's not just about the marketing, but the relationships you build through the medium of Twitter than can cause someone to check out your shop and stumble upon that 'just right' purchase. However, she does have a secret Twitter pleasure: Gigi loves to "watch views after a tweet and...to watch the number rise!"


Gigi is planning a holiday special starting sometime after Thanksgiving, but this week she's offering a shop of the week special!

Buy one, get one half off.
If you order 3 or more, shipping is free!
~~~~~~~
Find dizzlePOP on
Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/dizzlepop
Twitter: http://twitter.com/dizzlepop
Special thanks to Judy of WellspringCreations for writing this post!
Sb : )

Jusshar is just Sew Fabulous!

EtsyTwitter Team Shop of the Week - jusshar

The EtsyTwitter Team shop of the week is jusshar, featuring the sewn, knit, and crocheted accessories created by Beth Newbern-Hallam. Beth just doesn't run down to the store to buy material for every project. She loves to recyle yarns and fabrics. As she puts it, "I'm really dedicated to using what I have, and repurposing materials into something new." She does buy new materials for use in custom projects, unless the customer is like-minded and requests the repurposed materials!

As for ideas, Beth doesn't just get inspired; she is driven! "I just have an internal need to create. I knit and/or crochet every single day. I can't imagine NOT creating." Another thing Beth loves about her work is its mobility. She'll take it along on trips, car rides...even to her kids' school events! And if she's not getting the result she wants? "I can just unravel it and start over."

On the business front, Beth is planning to revamp her blog and website. She also plans to change the direction of her work from trying to hit trends to creating the items that come from her own imagination. This will be a challenge as she is a full time student in graphics and web design and planning a move to North Carolina where she plans to continue her college education. She wont' be alone though, as her youngest son will be attending the same college!

As for Twitter, Beth does tweet, but considers herself a "dabbler". As a business tool, she approaches social media carefully as she is concerned about being spammy. "That's such a turn off for me personally." Bringing business to her shop has been a struggle, although she has concluded that her sales are cyclical, with increased activity over the holidays. With her busy college schedule and planned relocation, Beth is planning to put her Etsy shop on an indefinate break on November 30th. "I'd like to sell out my Etsy shop(s) by then."

~~~~~~~

Other links to jusshar:
Etsy Shop: http://jusshar.etsy.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jusshar
Facebook: http://facebook.com/jusshardesigns
Blog: http://jusshardesigns.blogspot.com

Thanks to Judy of Wellspring Creations for writing this post! Sb : )

Have your cake and wear it too with FrostedTreats!

EtsyTwitter Team Shop of the Week

The EtsyTwitter Shop of the Week is FrostedTreats, featuring the creations of Jessica Mount. Since 2008, she's used polymer clay to make delicious looking cupcakes, cakes, cookies, pea pods, roses...and the occasional pig in an ice cream cone! While most of the tiny sculptures are wearable charms, Jessica has expanded her product line to include general accessories: bookmarks, push pins, magnets, etc.

For inspiration, Jessica collects photos, mostly from the Internet, of a variety of items: flowers, cakes, owls, fortune cookies, teapots, butterflies (and a few of her brother's pick up truck, though she's not quite sure how they got in there!) Always open to new ideas, when someone says "Oh! You should make..." she adds it to her list!

About her work, Jessica says "Since clay is my medium, the possibilities of what I can create are only limited by my own imagination. That is why I LOVE custom orders. I love having someone ask for something abstract and being able to say, "Yup! I can do that!" The only greater feeling is when they receive the finished product."

Jessica's goal this year is to continue expanding her product line. She says "Even though I love the idea of wearing a little cupcake around my neck or strawberries dangling from my ears, not everyone is into that sort of fashion statement. I've been working on creating more gift-able items...that way everyone can enjoy a little extra treat without worrying if the color of their frosting matches the rest of their outfit!"

In addition to her Etsy shop, Jessica will be showing her creations at a few craft fairs and market tables through the fall in preparation for the holiday season. She's been sketching out some holiday ornaments and...listening to her customers who are looking for gifts to give, that has defined her holiday focus. Look forward to all these new creations in FrostedTreats over the coming weeks!

Jessica has found that Twitter is her main form of bringing traffic to her Etsy shop "Since I started tweeting about my handmade crafts (as well as cross-promoting for things that catch my eye!) my sales and traffic have been phenomenal!" Her advice: "Tweet others the way you would like to be tweeted! If you see something that catches your eye, tweet about it! Having someone else gush over your work is so much more rewarding than gushing over your own projects. Make connections. Build friendships and networks with crafters like yourself and with people whose talents amaze you!"

Jessica's creativity is matched only by her enthusiasm!

~~~~~~~

Visit FrostedTreats in all these places:
Etsy Shop: http://frostedtreats.etsy.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/frostedtreats
Facebook: http://facebook.com/frostedtreats
Blog: http://frostedtreats.blogspot.com
Special Thanks to Judy of WellspringCreations for writing this post : )

EtsyTwitter Team at the Harvest Festival - Best in Show at

HARVEST FESTIVAL!! ~Let's shop!

Meet Donnielle from

Design Knit Fun
Make sure you check out the Harvest section of this amazing shop! You can also find
Scarves, Neckwarmers, Cowls, and Bangles.

Include code ETTHarvest at purchase for a complimentary Simply Fun bangle - choice of colors depends on availability

Meet Ellie from My Little Chickadee Creations

Here you will find Tile Coasters, Wedding Favors, and Personalized Ornament.

Sale is the following -please use the code "ETTHarvest"

25% off select tile coasters & trivets during the harvest festival.

Meet Claire from RhodesAnnalsDesigns

Claire makes beautiful scarves, cowls, and bags.

Her sale is:

FREE international shipping for September using the code ETTHarvest

Meet Debby from starbabyonline She has set up a special section just for our Harvest festival where you will find beautiful jewelry.

Her sale is EtsyTwitter Team is having a fall Harvest Festival sale! For my part, each of my items with the "ETTHarvest" tag are each $2.00 off - no limit on how many you can purchase! Just include ETTHarvest" in the "message to seller" section of your final review and I'll PayPal the $2.00 back to you within 24 hours.

Meet Janelle from Scrap with Style .

If you love to scrap or love pretty ribbon you gotta book mark Janelle's shop. Where you will find tons of Paper, Ribbon, Scrapbook Kits all in fall/autumn themes

Sale of 10% off any order of $10 or more (not including shipping) with the ETTHarvest code entered in the "msg to seller" spot at checkout. Refunds will be given via paypal after payment is made, 10% back will not be given on the shipping charges. Only one promo code/offer per order.

Welcome to Jus Shar desings run by Beth. She sews, knits and crochets many different items for men, women, children and teens. Pictured on the left here is one of her hats for men. She has several other designs and colors to choose from.

Mention "ETTHARVEST" in sellers notes and receive

FREE shipping within the United States, and 15% off shipping for the rest.

Hope your finding some great deals for the holidays. If not do not give up hope there are many more shops we can help you find that perfect gift in - just search type in search words { etsytwitter harvestfestival } in Etsy and you can see all our Team's creation.

Thanks for shopping HANDMADE : ) Sb

Find Haute-Couture at Yarncoture...

EtsyTwitter Team Shop of the Week

This week the Etsy Twitter Team is featuring yarncoture, the Etsy shop of Maryum Karim. Maryum is a knit/crochet accessories designer who makes an entire line of knit and crochet sweaters, hats, shrugs, scarves, brooches, spa items, and in the near future, perhaps, even bedding and home decor items!

The designs of yarncoture are aimed at customer comfort and satisfaction. Maryum offer a wide range of products and price points to accommodate every preference and be attractive to any budget. Maryum adds, "I also specialize in custom work to provide my customers with a "haute-couture" boutique experience...there's always going to be something special that a man or woman would like to own in their wardrobe and the experience of creating something special for someone is truly...rewarding".

Looking through her shop, it's not surprising that Maryum delights in using the finest materials and trying out new stiches and techniques. And inspiration? She says "Anything can inspire me..a strong personality, a beautiful vintage button, some soft fluffy yarn...anything! I can see a specific person or a specific group of materials and I will try to create around those things to fashion together something extraordinary."

Keep an eye on yarncoture for new designs for the Fall/Winter 2019-2011 season! Maryum is halfway to her goal of 300 sales this year and she's hoping the winter season will bring in lots of sales...and very satisfied repeat customers!

Maryum uses Twitter in a way reminiscent of fine shopkeepers by greeting everyone, talking a little bit about what she's working on, responding to other people's tweets of interest, and maybe tweet about some of the items in her Etsy shop. She believes that keeping her virtual shelves stocked with new and unique items is what brings sales to her shop...and that great customer service results in wonderful word-of-mouth advertising!


yarncoture is offering
Free Worldwide Shipping on SELECTED items
Free Shipping on EVERYTHING shipped within the U.S. and Canada
20% off on all Basketweave Knit Scarves and
20% off on all Amazing Chunky Skinny Scarves
~~~~~~~
Check out yarncoture through these venues!
Etsy: http://www.yarncoture.etsy.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/yarncoture
Blog: http://www.yarncoture.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/HandKnitsbyYarncoture

..and how about her latest Fall Collection video?!
Thanks to Judy of Wellspring Creations for writing this article!
: ) Sb

Getting an inside look at inmyheadstudios...

EtsyTwitter Team Shop of the Week!

Our Etsy Twitter Team Shop of the Week is inmyheadstudios featuring altered mixed-media domino and game piece jewelry, microscope slide glass pendants, ACEOs (Art Cards Editions and Originals) by the talented Vickie Porter.

In describing her work, Vickie puts it best "I have a seriously good/bad relationship with perfectionism so my customers can rest assured they are getting top quality materials and artwork. It’s sometimes hard to tell in photos online, but the dominoes and microscope slide glass pendants have real tiny paper collages on them. I work with ridiculously small pieces of paper sometimes.

"My new line of archival prints on my domino jewelry has allowed me to reach new levels of detail for such a tiny canvas. I have been creating larger mixed media collage work in the same proportions as the dominoes. I scan and print them out in wood domino size, which is 1 3/4 inches x 7/8 inches. I usually add another layer of detail to the little collage to make the domino special."

For such a variety of beautiful and intricate results, Vickie gets her inspiration from colors, lines, and shapes (basically everything). "I simply have to create or I’m not happy. It’s like needing air." It follows that Vickie is not confined by rules, but lets her inspiration and creativity have full rein. While she may not stick to one medium, she admits, "Central to almost everything I do is paper. I love paper."

For the upcoming seasons, Vickie plans to show her work at as many shows as she can fit into her schedule. She has big holiday plans, however to add domino Christmas tree ornaments and admits to having a "couple other things up my sleeve"...so we have some holiday surprises to look forward to in her etsy shop!

Vickie is happy to take custom orders and ships internationally, too!

On the business side, Vickie is adept at Twitter (via TweetDeck) and recommends the team to "Engage! Talk. Share! Provide quality content. Comment on links posted. Retweet. Actually, I rarely tweet about my shop. I probably should tweet it more. I get irritated with Etsy sellers who only tweet their shop links. Tell me about you and what is important to you. Let me get to know you. What excites you about your work? I’m way more likely to buy from you that way."

Tweeting links can be time-consuming to research, but Vickie has a tip to share! "One of my tricks is using Google Reader to find quality content to share. I have a feed set up for the keyword “creativity”. So every morning I have a big shiny new list of articles about creativity, which is a subject I really like to read about. When I read really good articles, I tweet them. Providing this kind of content gets me retweeted a lot and that in turn gets my name out there."

For bringing traffic to inmyheadstudios, Vickie has this tip to share: Connect "with people online in a combination of places– Twitter, Facebook, Ning sites. You have to talk about you or no one else will be talking about you. Get out there! All The Universe asks is that you show up."



FREE shipping to anywhere
from August 16-22!
Discount applied through
prompt PayPal refund.
No need for coupons or codes!
~~~~~~~
Etsy Shop: http://inmyheadstudios.etsy.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/inmyheadstudios
Blog: http://inmyheadstudios.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/InMyHeadStudios
flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/inmyheadstudios
Special thanks to Judy of WellspringCreations for writing this post!
: ) Sb

My Most Favorite Aunt is "Full of Knits and Flair"

EtsyTwitter Team Featured Shop - MostFavoriteAunt

The EtsyTwitter Team’s Shop of the week is: MostFavoriteAunt, also known as Pamela Ziemlewicz. According to Pamela, the shop is full of “knits and flair,” from baby hats, coffee cup cozies and other knitted goods to pinback buttons—all adorable, all handmade, and “all me,” she says What inspires her? “I'm pretty sassy. Usually I'll make some smart-alec remark and then think, ‘Oooh, that would make a cool...’” What is her motivation? “I work a lot. At the end of a long day, I love turning on the boob-tube, and sitting down with some yarn and needles to relax.” Eventually, she’d like to turn her craft into her full-time endeavor and dreams of quitting her day job…maybe by 2011!

On the Twitter front, she offers this advice: “just tweet yourself”! She does this by tweeting about her three biggest hobbies: traveling, reading, and creating. She brings traffic and sales to her shop through her generosity: “Do it for a cause! The biggest traffic draws are items where proceeds go to charity. This scarf is a super-seller!

Her upcoming plans? “Fall and Winter are always BIG seasons for me. Lots of people buying warm fuzzies. Lots of cold and yucky days to spend inside creating.” Look for an increased and ever-changing inventory! Perfect timing for the holiday season to come!


Please visit MostFavoriteAunt:
Etsy Shop: http://MostFavoriteAunt.ETSY.com
Twitter: http://Twitter.com/MostFavorite

Thanks to Judy of WellspringCreations for writing this post : )

Christmas In July - Day 31 : A fun finale...

Well the end of the month is finally here...but this month has been wonderful to explore and learn and share all things Christmas.

So to wrap up I am going to share a couple pix from my last trip home for Christmas 2008 - yes I live in hot and sweltering South Florida, but I am originally from Chicago and when I am there, you wouldn't know I've lived most of my life in Florida, except for a little southern twang "ya'all".

Last trip - Chicago was blanketed with 2 feet of fresh snow and my husband and I built this wonky snowman. In all of our holiday trips {10 so far}, this was the first time he'd ever built one - he's a Florida baby. Only one other trip there was more than an inch on the ground, but I was coming down with a cold and my Grandmother banished me to watch the 3 generation snowball through the picture window.

This snowy scene has to be one of my favorite pictures taken from my iPhone.

Here frosty was the next morning - the weather had warmed up & a funny thing: the birds and squirrels didn't eat the sugar ball cookies we used for eyes - there made with nuts!

I hope everyone enjoyed my Christmas extravanganza and I thank you all for visiting and sharing. I leave you with one thing I learned strolling the decorated streets of downtown Chicago..."You better watch out, you never know when Christmas Good and Evil will sneak up on you..."

Have a great summer crafting up handmade holiday goodies! I have lots of new things to make and I want to learn to crochet those cute ornaments I featured a couple weeks back...Sb

Celebrating Christmas Every Day! CHRISTMAS IN JULY - Day 30

Welcome to Christmas, Florida...

Photo from FloridaSmart.com website

Christmas, Florida

Christmas is a small, rural community in East Orange County, east of Orlando and west of Titusville. The town's name was established from the community that was originally called Fort Christmas, named accordingly for the day the fort was built on December 27, 1837. The "Fort" was dropped when the post office opened in 1892.

Population: 1,162 (US Census 2000)

"Welcome to Christmas, Florida! Did you know there‘s a town in Florida named Christmas? Yep, it’s down there about halfway between Orlando and the Atlantic Ocean. How did Christmas, Florida get its name? Soldiers fighting with the Seminole Indians built a fort there in 1837. They named it Christmas because they started building it on Christmas Day. The fort was built in three days and abandoned three months later.

Photo from FloridaSmart.com website

Christmas, Florida has a tiny, but very busy post office. People all over the country send in stacks of mail at Christmastime. They want to get the “Chirstmas, Florida” postmark on their Christmas mail! Plus, lots of kids send their letters to Santa to Christmas, Florida. Did they forget about the North Pole????

Photo from FloridaSmart.com website

Photo from FloridaSmart.com website

Christmas also has a permanent Christmas Tree. This 35 foot tree is decorated year-round. Christmas, Florida has the Christmas spirit every day of the year!"

Christmas, Florida information quoted above is from book
entitled "The Most Amazing Book of Florida Christmas Trivia"
by Carole Marsh.


On December 25, 1837, a force of 2,000 U.S. Army Soldiers and Alabama Volunteers arrived near this spot to construct a fort which was aptly named, Fort Christmas. This fort was only one of over 200 forts built during the Second Seminole Indian War, 1835 - 1842. The fort houses exhibits and a video presentation on the Seminole Indian Wars. Photo from Fort Christmas Historical Park website.

and...Upon further research there is one other claim to fame
for this Jolly ole' town ...
Christmas, FL is Home to the World's Largest Alligator!

Photo from roadsideamerica.com

"SWAMPY" is big -- big enough to contain the gift shop, ticket counter and offices of Jungle Adventures, in the holiday season-themed town of Christmas, Florida. How long exactly is Swampy? "Pretty damn long!" an absentee manager's voice blares from the phone at the cashier's station, as employees scurry to protect their supremacy claim from a rival gator in Kissimmee. So COOL!

There's just one more day of Christmas in July...see you tomorrow : ) Sb

CHRISTMAS IN JULY - Day 29

Today's post I am posting a projects that I have made for gifts. These are pretty gift boxes decorated up with pretty scrapbook paper and sheets of coordinating die-cut floral embellishments that are layered with 3-D pop dots. Makes a great home for earrings or gift card holder...and the best part, the box is part of the gift.



Inside I put a message in this one...



These just started out as blank white boxes with a magnetic closure...with a little creative love, ribbon and bling...something beautiful to enclose a gift.



Thanks for visiting...hope you have a crafty day!Sb

CHRISTMAS IN JULY - Day 28

Shrink Plastic Stamped Ornament...


I've been making ornaments for my Grandmother to give as gifts to her painting students for several years now. I've made quilled snowflakes, paper origami ornaments, decorated cookie cutters, the magnet reindeers, the clear glass balls and a few more I can't recall right now. I'll have to get photos of them all when I go home and visit my Grandmother this Christmas. She puts all my handmade creations on her tree - even one's we made when I was growing up. My mom always had us making stuff for the holidays. I know she has some super cute felt gingerbread ornaments, and pretty beaded snowflakes and wreath ornaments.

For today I am sharing one of my favorite {and most challenging} creations working with shrink plastic. Who doesn't recall when they were kids and between the batches of home-baked cookies painting Snoopy and other fun "Shrinky-Dink" ornaments. I know I have a couple I snagged off my Mom out of her Christmas Stash.



This was made with a Stampington Santa Collage image stamped onto the shrink plastic, and I colored with markers and Prismacolor colored pencils on the back before baking. They are only about 2" square, but so beautiful. Especially with the twinkle lights on the tree reflecting through them. I finished them of with a border and hanger made from icicle blue fun fur.



These took a long time to make with all the hand-coloring, but the Santa's have a hand-painted look and the depth of the layers and pencil marks are retained - this was a surprise.

Have a great day! Sb

Be the Belle of the Ball with BellaBeadJewelry

EtsyTwitter Team - Shop of the Week

Our Etsy Shop of the Week is bellabeadjewelry, where you can find handcrafted beads, findings, and even completed jewelry made from them! They are created by proprietor, Linda Lawrence. Her art and the the Etsy shop in which she sells it, are only one of the creative sides to her life. During the day, Linda is an art teacher in a local elementary school and, as she puts it, she "plays with fire by night!"

Linda has been making glass beads and jewelry for several years. She finds it interesting and challenging because there is always something to learn and improve upon when working with glass beadmaking. Many things inspire Linda in her creations; in fact, anything that catches her eye could possibly spark an idea for a bead or jewelry design. Linda adds, "the students I teach are a huge influence on me. I adore children. They are not complicated and are so free and open generally". Linda has a very personal feel about her work and says "the love that I have for making my glass baubles comes through each piece. I want my customers to enjoy it as much as I did creating it!"

Linda's main goals for her Etsy shop are to work smarter, try new things, and keep bellabeadjewelry stocked. Her take on it? "Its hard juggling it all but I believe good planning is key!" Tweeting must be hard for Linda to work into her busy schedule, but she uses Twitter to entice her followers into "popping over to my shop, blog or visit our shop of the week". Linda feels her greatest tools are her blog (to direct people to my etsy shop) and her newsletter.


bellabeadjewelry is offering a
15% discount
for the week of July 26, 2010
~~~~~~~
Please visit bellabeadjewelry!
Shop: http://www.bellabeadjewelry.etsy.com
Blog: http://www.bellabeadjewelrybylinda.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/BellaBellaBeads

Written by Judy of Wellspring Creations

Christmas in July - Day 27: Did You Know???

These Fun Facts about Holiday Ornaments...

Photo from Victoriana.com

The earliest ornaments for sale in stores were flat lead stars, crosses, butterflies and diamonds. They were popular in the U. S. between 1870 and 1890. The first blown-glass ornaments were sold in America. They were not the thin bubbles we see today, but very thick.

Photo from davidpoolantiques.com

Other early ornaments included flying angels and animals made of wax. Angels had cardboard wings and their clothes were made from tinsel and ribbon.

Photo from davidpoolantiques.com

In 1875, Celluloid ornaments were popular, even though they were a fire hazard. These included soldier, doll and birdhouse ornaments.

Celluloid Santa Clause. 10” high. Stamped on carton base “Japan”.
Celluloid face, papier mache limbs. Stuffed torso, cotton clothing, wool beard. Credit: Garth’s Auctions.

In 1880, Frank Woolworth reluctantly decided to sell ornaments in his 14 Woolworth’s stores. Little did he know that before long he would be ordering 200,000 ornaments each year!

Photo from davidpoolantiques.com

Other ornaments to appear next included: gold and silver camels, pianos and sailboats; big, fluffy, cotton-stuffed Santas and angels; glass bead stars; Japanese lanterns and parasols; hand-blown glass fruit, vegetables, fish and storybook characters.

In 1892, Christmas-tree hooks were invented! WOW!

In 1910, Sears added ornaments to its mail-order catalog.

It was 1918 before American companies began to make ornaments. They did so because of World War l; the U.S. would not accept German goods.

Photo from davidpoolantiques.com

The first silver foil icicles were very popular in 1878. Americans would be the first to make some that would not tarnish. In 1960, they were no longer made from lead; manufacturers switched to mylar because of the danger of lead poisoning. The first “angel hair” appeared in 1880; tinsel garlands in the 1890s.

Facts are from book entitled "The Most Amazing Book of Florida Christmas Trivia" by Carole Marsh.

We're still celebrating Christmas until the end of the month. Hope you are hanging in there...the best is yet to come : ) Sb